


Three O'Clock Consultation

by lesbianmxgicians (kaianieves)



Category: The Magicians (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Tattoo Parlor, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-03
Updated: 2019-05-03
Packaged: 2020-02-16 12:36:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18691636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaianieves/pseuds/lesbianmxgicians
Summary: Kady has a three o'clock. Her name's Julia.





	Three O'Clock Consultation

**Author's Note:**

> Femslash prompt: Tattoo artist!Kady/Julia (badass wickoff).

Kady sat on the rolling leather stool behind the front desk, waiting. She had a three o'clock consultation that was looking to get some work done. She wasn't expecting much from it- part of Kady didn't even expect the woman to show. Her shop, Skin (maybe not the most creative name in the world) was just off the Venice boardwalk, after all.

The concrete floors were constantly grainy, covered in sand brought in by flip flops and sneakers from out on the beach. They mostly got tweakers and tourists looking for something cheap and easy- completely devoid of meaning spare, “Drunk-me wanted a purple butterfly!”

When the bulletproof door caught on the tiny golden bell hanging just above it, Kady looked up from her cellphone. A woman stood at the front of the shop, olive skin sweaty and long brown hair pulled over a shoulder. Kady couldn't tell if she was a tourist- she wasn't wearing any of the classic overpriced L.A. merch they usually wore. Just a simple tank top and denim board shorts.

“Are you Kady Diaz?” she asked. Oh, yes. This was Kady's three o'clock. It was already a pleasant surprise she hadn't stumbled in stinking of Corona.

“That'd be me.” Kady stood from her chair, setting her phone down. “Julia, right?”

On the other side of the room, a needle buzzed. A tall and lanky man with brown skin and a shiny bald head, Henry Fogg, leaned over one of Skin's only regulars: William Adiyodi. He went by Penny. “How you doing?” Henry asked him. He took the needle away from the skin of his shoulder.

“Peachy.” Henry and Penny both glanced up when they heard the door bell jingle. In walked Kady's three o'clock. Kady talked to her for a minute, before walking the customer to the back. Penny stared after her, watching the door swing almost closed. It stopped, open ajar.

Henry whistled low, watching Penny and shaking his head. He pressed the needle to his shoulder again, buzzing again. “New client?” Penny asked. Henry chuckled.

Inside the room, Kady and Julia sat across from each other: Julia on a threadbare thrift store couch the same colour as the ocean, Kady in a tall office chair. The desk behind her was up against the wall, the surface cluttered with paperwork and designs.

“So you're thinking about getting a tattoo,” Kady said. “Is this your first?”

“Oh, no,” Julia said. She pulled up her shirt a little, revealing a tattoo rising from her hip bone. A pink and black stitched heart with a button in the middle. Kady nodded.

“Nice,” she said.

“Thanks.”

“So what's the subject of this one, placement…?”

“Well,” Julia said. Kady braced herself for indecisiveness. “I was thinking something to do with clocks and trees, on my arm. I know it sounds a bit odd.”

 _Odd, you should see the other things I've done,_ Kady thought.

“No, not at all. I'm glad you have an idea,” she said, laughing a little. “How big were you thinking?”

“I'd like it to take up a considerable amount of skin. Like, from shoulder to elbow,” Julia said. She traced the area with her fingers as she spoke.

Kady nodded again. “I assume you've looked at my portfolio?” A lot of people surprisingly didn't. It was a surprise, of course, because they'd be getting that on their body, permanently. Most of the photos were of tattoos on Penny, the man finishing up with Henry outside.

“Yeah!” Julia said, eyes lighting up. “The tulle sleeve you did- and the rose vines…” The rose vine trellis was all along Penny's left arm and shoulder, traveling over onto his pec. Kady was sure that Julia’s enthusiasm would have gotten her a personal tour of all of his tats had he been in the room.

“Great then. It should take me the weekend to come up with a design. Can I ask- what's the inspiration?” Knowing that helped draw something that the client usually was sure to like.

“My grandmother recently passed away,” Julia said.

“I'm sorry for your loss.”

“Thanks.” A thoughtful smile graced her lips. “Her husband used to collect clocks, and even after his passing she kept them all. Well, my sister and I were cleaning out a few things, and discovered one of the trees she planted in her backyard had grown through the brick and everything. It was wrapped around one of these clocks- here.”

Julia pulled out her phone, showing a photo to Kady. A golden clock was on a shelf, the face cracked, brown branches protruding from the wall wrapped tightly around it.

“Holy shit.”

“I know, right? Nobody can figure out how long it's been like that, or if my Grammy knew about it, but it seems like a really nice thing to remember her by.” It was clearly a bit of a sore subject, but Julia seemed happy to talk about the meaning behind the tattoo. She was one of the brighter personalities Kady had met working here. It felt a bit like she was staring at the sun.

They went through the other important questions: any medications being taken, recent or upcoming surgeries, any recent pregnancies. Julia laughed a bit at the last one. “No, no recent pregnancies.”

Kady walked Julia to the front of the shop again. She set down Julia’s paperwork on the counter so she could look it over, then handed her a pen so she could sign it. “Tuesday at noon then,” Julia said. She glanced at a small pile of business cards for Skin next to the Breast Cancer Society donation bin. She took one. “I'll see you then.”

Julia winked, turned and left the shop. Penny, shoulder wrapped in plastic, watched her go. “I think you're out of luck there,” Henry told him. Kady sat down on her stool again, joining the conversation.

“Gah- dude, were you checking out my client?” she asked.

“He was indeed,” Henry said before Penny could deny it. “A fruitless pursuit, my friend.” Both Kady and Penny gave him confused looks. Henry didn't elaborate, simply shrugging his shoulders. He went back to wiping down his station.


End file.
